These days the blog is up and down, rather like the English football team. Mixed feelings there. Despite the poor performances and attitudes, it is true that the only important thing in football is winning. And perhaps the Capello formula will work. Today, Germany once more ... let’s hope it doesn’t go to penalties!Meanwhile, summer is here and another academic year over. As I hope to rest and enjoy summer, so this blog will also shift down a gear with less frequent postings ... for now, a song with no connection to football, summer, or anything else I’ve talked about recently. I wish I was James Bond from Scouting for Girls’ self-titled 2007 LP.

Still with football. Do few goals, draws, and paint-drying matches mean that this World Cup is dull, or is it because the minnows are starting to catch up with the big boys?At least we can enjoy the sight of New Zealand drawing with Italy, or the French throwing a tantrum! Better than watching England’s latest efforts, anyway. It is not just the fact they couldn’t beat Algeria but rather the lack-lustre effort they showed, as if they couldn’t even be bothered to run for their money.Until recently it would have been unthinkable for football fans to boo their own team in England but Friday was one such incident. Justified? Personally, I wouldn’t, but then again I have not spent 5000 euros and one month’s holiday to see these over-paid superstars lounge around...Something a bit more interesting than the latest England matches, is this link I’ve been sent of the fans of, sorry I have to name them, Argentina.

Back to football for a change. From what I can see there is a mixed bag of feelings regarding the Spanish football team here in Catalonia. Given that Catalonia is not allowed to have its own team, and the Spanish team is used to support or elevate Spanish nationalism, it is not surprising that many Catalans wish little good for their neighbours. However, can you imagine living through a World Cup or Olympic Games with no team of your own to support? For this reason, it is not surprising either that others do find themselves egging on, openly or otherwise, the Spanish team. Besides which it’s half the Barça team anyway!For me, though, the political and injust treatment Spain dishes out to Catalonia outweighs any wish for Puyol and company to win silverware.

Having said that, it’s only a game – may the best team win! And at the moment that includes Switzerland among the candidates!

England – ehmm! Well, trying for something positive, we have to remember that the population of the USA is 7 times ours, so gaining a draw against them is not so bad. And we do have two other goalkeepers to try out. And if Gerard and Rooney start banging them in, who’ll care about the defense?

Switzerland is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe where it is bordered by Germany to the north, France to the west, Italy to the south, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. It has a population of approximately 7.8 million. All this as appears in Wikipedia. However, they make no mention of their footballing prowess ...Musically, we could mention The Young Gods. Here they are with Skin Flowers from their 1992 LP TV Sky.

As I posted a few days ago, my favourite English football song is Three Lions (Football’s Coming Home). Today it’s time to hear the original version from 1996 with the lyrics written back then. Since that time, the lyrics have been adapted several times to include more failures, more disappointments, and more wishful thinking. Let’s hope it will never have to be re-written again as this year we’re coming back from South Africa with the World Cup in the suitcase!So this is the song. And the football, what happened in 1996? As you can imagine, we lost once more, to Germany, on penalties in the semis!! Again!No more, this time we’re going to put an end to this nightmare and if I could wish for the perfect World Cup it would inlcude knocking out other old foes like Portugal or France, walking over Argentina in the semis, and destroying Germany in the final ...

So, while we load the fridge with beers, here’s the song, by the Lightning Seeds with Frank Skinner and David Baddiel.

The one thing that keeps England football fans going, that helps us to keep the faith that one day we will once more hold the World Cup in our national sport, the one we invented! 1966, England beat Germany in the World Cup Final and names like Gordan Banks, Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst, and many more, earn their places in our collective memory.

Who remembers the song, though? World Cup Willie by Lonnie Donegan devoted to the 1966 mascot.

OK, so the footie season has finished, just in time for the World Cup to start! Who said there was a crisis? What does it matter that unemployment is soaring, and the government is raising taxes, lowering salaries, cutting back on public services and investments – what does all this matter if your team can win the World Cup? How easy it is to keep us happy ... so let’s forget the mundane news of politics and disasters, and get some beers in the fridge.

Strange news story of the year was that the FA has not requested an Official England football song this year, for the first time since ’66. Well, if it helps keep minds on the job in hand, so be it. However, Robbie Williams and Russell Brand have participated in a re-make of Three Lions (Football’s Coming Home) – originally a song for the 1996 European Championships. The best ever football song in my opinion. So here’s 44 years of hurt in a nutshell – with a cool home-made video which some kind person has prepared and uploaded.

Well, at last scientists have confirmed what most of us already knew just through watching the news everyday. Apparently homosapiens (us) did "get it on" with neanderthal man, and woman ... as I say, it's always been fairly evident that there are still some of us knocking about with a bit of caveman blood in us!Ray Davies of The Kinks also thought he was an Ape Man (1970).

If there's one thing the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain is known for, though, it's playing the ukulele, which is thankfully back in fashion. Here they are with the Undertones' 1979 hit, Teenage Kicks.

Well, on Sunday once more the people of the river Ebro region filled the streets of Barcelona demanding justice and common sense – and, above all, that laws are made to be followed. Why do our governments sell us the story of the benefits of being in the European Union if, afterwards, they themselves are the first to ignore EU law? We’re either in the EU or we’re not.Spain is showing very little willingness to apply the European Water Directive. They intend to share out the Ebro’s water to the highest bidder without taking into account the river or its ecosystems, as opposed to what EU laws state. For this reason, once more, the inhabitants of the Ebro area have had to “lose” a beautiful summer day, and spend money which many do not have, to go to Barcelona and do the job that the governments are paid for doing.